Just off the getaway!!

[ictcruiser]

[quote name=ictcruiser;

 

I've never understood why someone who does not like a certain line would even be on their board pages. I don't visit the other lines pages to post negative comments.

 

 

 

I am sorry' date=' but I just don't understand your position. I thought the purpose of Cruise Critic was to exchange information and impressions about various ships and their itineraries. I just don't want to know the good. I want to know about service issues or features about the ship which might have disappointed cruisers.

 

 

 

People should be able to post negative comments, as well as positive comments. All of it is very useful to people who read these boards to determine which cruise lines and ship they want to try out in the future. I think it's important to point out that not ALL people who cruise stick to one cruise line for all of their vacations. I have yet to find a cruise line whose frequent cruiser perks have made me loyal to their brand. I get excited about trying out a new ship not about a few free drinks or a free bag of laundry.

 

 

 

So,yes, those people who haven't liked a certain line, whether it's NCL on this board or Carnival on another, should continue to post and express their unhappiness with changes in policy, or the level of service or the state of the ship. You can take them with a grain of salt or refute them, based on your experience.

 

 

 

Please make this forum a welcoming place for people to post their views, even if you don't agree with them. I want to read it all and because I have absolutely no loyalty to any of the cruise lines, I won't be offended. Nor should I be.[/quote]

 

 

I welcome likes and dislikes too but a statement like "you might reconsider booking on a certain line because of changes" is not criticism. Cruise lines are all always making changes some better, some worse. Yes this board is here to help and should be welcoming. As I said I just got off the Getaway and although it was a great cruise there where things that could have been better and I will address those in my upcoming review.

[ictcruiser]

Just a quick question.

 

Do you have any idea of how many kids were onboard? Our Son has always loved the kids club, but I've heard stories of 1000+ kids being onboard the Getaway at this time of year, which I suspect would affect his enjoyment (and our queueing time at opening).

 

Did the kids club seen really crowded?

 

 

Our son went every day and loved it. It was busy but never seemed over crowded at all. Our son is 4 and he would have stayed there all day if we would have let him.

[seguetocaribe]

Thank you so much for your reply. I am feeling great about our upcoming sailing! We are a pretty go with the flow, not picky, happy to be on vacation kind of family but not huge fans of crowds in small spaces. Glad to hear you never really felt too crowded. Thanks for the feedback on the kids club and pools too. My kiddos didn't like Camp Carnival (9 & 13) so we will see about this time. Any excursion recommendations that your family enjoyed? We are visiting Tortola for the first time:).

 

Based on your attitude, sounds like you will have the best time!! Look, we all know there is always something that we can complain about but what's the point? We are all spending our hard-earned money to have a good time - so let's do that!!

We did not go to Tortola. I'm not sure when the switch is happening but right now, the Getaway goes to St Maarten, St Thomas and Nassau. Maybe the change in itinerary occurs when the Escape comes to Miami? Not sure. In St. Thomas, we were supposed to go on a tour with Godfrey tours but... they did not show up!!! I guess I could complain about that (LOL!!) Trust me when I say that they got an earful from me but I haven't heard back from them (not surprised). We ended up getting a private taxi to do a tour around the island. It was pretty good. We were not up for a beach that day because we got very sunburned the day before on a boat tour in St Maarten! We've been to Nassau several times and have done Atlantis so for the first time ever, we stayed on the ship at that port and had a nice, quiet day around the ship.

[seguetocaribe]

We have done NCL in the past but it looks like the inside cabin size is shrinking with very little storage space. But we were just on the Carnival Sunshine and noticed less closet storage space and no side tables next to the beds. Any feedback on closet space would be appreciated

 

We found the closet and storage space to be fine but we were in a balcony cabin. I'm not sure how it compares to an inside cabin. Also, we actually had 2 balcony cabins - connecting with my kids (which was absolute heaven). My husband and I were joking that we could not decide which we appreciated more - having the UBP for free or having 2 cabins so that we were not all over each other! :D

If we had 1 cabin for the 4 of us, I think that the storage space would have been tight (but doable). Definitely more than fine for 2

[seguetocaribe]

Thank you for posting about your cruise. I always look forward to Saturdays to see new reviews come in.

I have a question about the iconcierge app... did you call home with it or just use it on board?

Also just my $0.02 about changes to gratuity and increases in drink costs. For us it isn't a big deal. I will still tip my server and bartender in cash. I hear a lot of complaining about the changes, but honestly costs increase as the years pass, and what was normal 10 years ago is no longer the case.

 

The iconcierge cannot be used to call home. It is just for use on the ship. You have to download the app before you board. Once you are on the ship, put your phone into airplane mode and then connect to the Getaway Wifi. It then gives an option for the $6.95 charge to get text/calling option. If you opt for this, it assigns you a phone number that is yours for the duration of the cruise and you can give it to who ever you want on the ship so you can text and call each other. Very useful when I wanted to contact my husband and also the kids club! I could call the kids club and they could call me if my children wanted to talk to me or have me come get them. Def worth the 7 bucks!

[SissasMomE]

 

 

I welcome likes and dislikes too but a statement like "you might reconsider booking on a certain line because of changes" is not criticism.

 

Sure it is. Feel free to just skip over posts that don't suit you. Most of us regulars know how to navigate the NCL board :)

[seguetocaribe]

Just a quick question.

 

Do you have any idea of how many kids were onboard? Our Son has always loved the kids club, but I've heard stories of 1000+ kids being onboard the Getaway at this time of year, which I suspect would affect his enjoyment (and our queueing time at opening).

 

Did the kids club seen really crowded?

 

I don't know the number of kids onboard but it is spring break so I imagine the number is quite high! Certainly did not seem overrun with kids. When we would go over to the kids club, there were usually a few people waiting in line to drop off but never seemed overly crowded. Likewise, when I would peek my head in to try to see what my kids were up to, never seemed like too many kids at any given time - in fact it always looked like a nice number!

[SissasMomE]

Just a quick question.

 

Do you have any idea of how many kids were onboard? Our Son has always loved the kids club, but I've heard stories of 1000+ kids being onboard the Getaway at this time of year, which I suspect would affect his enjoyment (and our queueing time at opening).

 

Did the kids club seen really crowded?

 

Keith, when we went over spring break, we had over 1500 kids onboard, and it really did not affect the wait times, etc.

[Carnac767]

Thanks for posting. Glad you had a good time. We're looking forward to checking out Escape.

[seguetocaribe]

Thanks for posting. Glad you had a good time. We're looking forward to checking out Escape.

 

 

That's what's next on our agenda too!! :D

[ictcruiser]

 

 

 

Sure it is. Feel free to just skip over posts that don't suit you. Most of us regulars know how to navigate the NCL board :)

 

 

Thanks for the navigation tips.. You and your posts have been so helpful to me what would we do without posters like you...

[SissasMomE]

 

 

Thanks for the navigation tips.. You and your posts have been so helpful to me what would we do without posters like you...

 

You're welcome. All 400 of your posts have been extremely helpful :rolleyes:

[ictcruiser]

 

 

 

You're welcome. All 400 of your posts have been extremely helpful :rolleyes:

 

 

Wow thanks for letting me know, I didn't know I had 400 thanks! (Stalker)

[Windy56]

 

Sure it is. Feel free to just skip over posts that don't suit you. Most of us regulars know how to navigate the NCL board :)

 

That was erroneously posted as my comment. I did not write it. If you read further up in the thread you will see that is was a statement made by another poster in answer to my defence of posting negative comments.

 

You will see that in comment #21, I quote ictcruiser and then offer my position that all posters are entitled to posting both negative and positive comments. I have no loyalty to a particular cruise line and the negative comments are as useful to me, as the positive ones, in helping me decide if I want to cruise on a particular ship.

Edited March 23, 2015 by Windy56

[TavelRN]

On a lighter note..... What time did you arrive in Nassau? And was your sailing part of the itinerary (Nassau time change) change?

[seguetocaribe]

[quote name='TavelRN']On a lighter note..... What time did you arrive in Nassau? And was your sailing part of the itinerary (Nassau time change) change?[/quote]

We were about 15 minutes late to Nassau - around 10:15. No, this was still the old itinerary - 10 am- 6 pm